Recent News
Congressman Salud Carbajal Celebrates Educational Partnership with Air Force Research Lab and Cal Poly
Aug 12, 2022
SAN LUIS OBISPO — Congressman Salud Carbajal celebrated the future of space exploration with the opening of a new vacuum chamber in Cal Poly’s College of Engineering, used for testing spacecraft or spacecraft parts under a simulated space environment, during a tour at the university’s campus Aug. 11.
Carbajal championed Cal Poly’s partnership with the Air Force Research Laboratory that funded roughly $2.5 million to enhance the Aerospace Engineering Department and boost its mini-satellite program, which was the catalyst for a substantial expansion of space research two decades ago. To date, Carbajal’s efforts have brought in approximately $12.5 million to the College of Engineering.
Cal Poly’s College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences Awarded Over $39 Million in State Funding to Aid in Building Long-Term Growth in Food, Forestry and Agriculture Sectors
Aug 1, 2022
SAN LUIS OBISPO — Cal Poly’s College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences was awarded $39.5 million in one-time state funding to build long-term stability for food, forestry and agricultural systems in the face of intensified weather events and changing climate patterns. The funding will assist in providing the infrastructure needed to build programs to teach future generations sustainable agriculture practices.
“The food, agriculture and environmental science industries foresee double-digit job growth over the next 10 years. Building climate resilience is critical to the future of farmers, food producers, and land, water and air resources,” said Andrew Thulin, dean of the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences. “Today’s investment by Gov. Newsom and the state legislature in sustainable agriculture will benefit future generations by providing students entering the workforce with skills that make them ready to tackle the environmental challenges we’re facing.”
Cal Poly Launches Green Office Certification
Jul 25, 2022
SAN LUIS OBISPO – Cal Poly recently launched a Green Office Certification (GOC) program designed to engage staff and faculty in implementing sustainable practices in their workplace.
The program provides a method to educate and evaluate how sustainable an office is and uses a point system to quantify these efforts. If an office receives enough points, it will be Green Office Certified.
"Lots of campuses across the nation have Green Offices programs; it was time Cal Poly followed suit,” Sustainability Coordinator Kylee Singh said. “It has been exciting to see so many staff members interested and eager to participate to make their workplace more sustainable.”
Focusing on actions that staff and faculty can practice rather than larger infrastructure changes, the program aims to educate and engage employees, reduce the campus’ environmental footprint, save the university money and meet Cal Poly’s sustainability goals.
Cal Poly School of Education Awarded $21,000 Grant for Developing Curriculum, Teacher Training to Support Children with Dyslexia
Jul 25, 2022
SAN LUIS OBISPO — The Cal Poly School of Education (SOE) has been awarded a $21,000 grant by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing to help incorporate required dyslexia guidelines into its training for aspiring teachers in K-12 education.
The Dyslexia Grants to Preparation Program funding will go toward updating curriculum and course offerings to best align with the California Dyslexia Guidelines in both general and special education programs.
New California educational code, Senate Bill 488, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in October 2021, has revised teaching standards to include additional support for diverse learners in reading and writing and will require all teacher education programs to include content outlined in the new guidelines.
Cal Poly History Student Accepted to Panetta Institute Congressional Internship Program
Jul 14, 2022
SAN LUIS OBISPO — Ethan Gutterman, a third-year history major and ethics, public policy, science and technology minor from the San Fernando Valley, will serve as Cal Poly’s 2022 representative to the Panetta Institute Congressional Internship Program.
After a two-week training period at the Panetta Institute at CSU Monterey Bay, Gutterman will work in the capitol office of a California congressional representative in Washington, D.C., for 11 weeks in the fall.
“I have been interested in politics for a long time, and I am thrilled for this opportunity to work in Congress and be immersed in the experience,” Gutterman said. “I’m also excited to meet and work with so many accomplished students from across the state through the program.”
Cal Poly Professors Say State Law Mandating Plastic Packaging Be Recyclable Could Promote Positive Sustainable Innovation — But Plastic Isn’t Always Bad, or the Most Damaging
Jul 8, 2022
University’s Packaging Program — the Only One of Its Kind in a U.S. Business School — Encourages Students to Explore Sustainability in the Industry
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Even before California passed a ground-breaking law requiring all plastics be recyclable or compostable by 2032, Cal Poly students were exploring more sustainable packaging alternatives, professors said.
“We need professionals who understand the profound implications of their design decisions,” said Javier de la Fuente, who chairs the Industrial Technology and Packaging area in the Orfalea College of Business. “I repeat this to my students all the time.”
And, he added, more legislation will be needed to make a difference.
“The regulations of one state are clearly insufficient to solve challenges that do not recognize borders,” de la Fuente said. “More policies will be needed to have a real effect.”
Cal Poly Ventures Announces Series A Investment in Mazen Animal Health
Jun 24, 2022
Startup is developing orally delivered animal vaccines that could revolutionize animal disease prevention
SAN LUIS OBISPO — Cal Poly Ventures, a donor-supported fund that invests in Cal Poly-founded and -affiliated startups, announced its investment in the $12 million Series A round of funding for Mazen Animal Health Inc.
Mazen Animal Health is focused on developing, delivering and commercializing novel biological vaccines and therapeutics. The firm’s orally delivered animal vaccines could revolutionize animal disease prevention.
“We’re excited to support the advancement of this cutting-edge vaccine technology for animals. This novel approach got its start right here in the Tech Park at Cal Poly, and we want to do what we can to help bring it to market,” said John Townsend, executive director of the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE), home to Cal Poly Ventures.
Cal Poly Professor: Interest Rate, Raised to Combat Inflation, Could Eventually Lower Housing Prices but Initially Will Make Housing Even More Unaffordable to Americans Now Unable to Buy
Jun 23, 2022
SAN LUIS OBISPO — While the Federal Reserve’s actions to increase interest rates have placed home ownership even further out of reach for many Americans, those steadily rising costs might eventually help would-be buyers, said the chair of Cal Poly’s Finance Area.
“House prices are more likely to come down in the longer run as the Fed holds its course of fighting high prices with restrictive monetary policy,” said Ziemowit Bednarek, an associate professor of finance. “In that sense there is definitely hope for prospective buyers.”
Hope is not something non-wealthy home buyers have experienced much of in recent years.
Cal Poly Concrete Canoe Team Makes History with Sixth National Title
Jun 15, 2022
American Society of Civil Engineers Concrete Canoe Competition Resumes after two-year delay
SAN LUIS OBISPO — After a two-year delay due to COVID-19, the Cal Poly concrete canoe team returned to its winning ways at the 2022 American Society of Civil Engineers Concrete Canoe Competition at Louisiana Tech University on June 3-5. The victory marks Cal Poly’s sixth championship in the 35-year history of the competition.
Competing with their space-themed canoe Europa against 19 other universities in Ruston, Louisiana, located about 240 miles north of New Orleans, eight Cal Poly engineering students not only swept the races but also finished first in the technical presentation and technical proposal categories of the competition and second in the final product prototype. Université Laval of Canada finished second, Western Kentucky was third, Youngstown State was fourth and New York University-Tandon finished fifth.
Cal Poly Funds 14 Faculty Research Projects
Jun 15, 2022
SAN LUIS OBISPO — Cal Poly’s division of Research, Economic Development and Graduate Education (R-EDGE) announced the 14 awards for the 2022-23 cycle of the Research, Scholarly and Creative Activities (RSCA) grant program.
Supported by funds from the CSU Chancellor's Office and the Cal Poly Provost's Office, the RSCA faculty grant program is designed to enable faculty to contribute new knowledge through robust programs of scholarship focused on strengthening California socially, culturally and economically.
“The Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activities Grant Program provides annual funding to faculty for their ongoing engagement in research and creative activities and demonstrates a campus commitment to the teacher-scholar model,” said Dawn Neill, chair of the Grants Review Committee of the Academic Senate. “It is great to see the work faculty at Cal Poly are doing across the university.”